Written Answers Wednesday 27 June 2007

Scottish Executive

2014 Commonwealth Games

Bashir Ahmad (Glasgow Region) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what legislative provisions it intends to make in consequence of the commitments given in the Candidate City File for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Stewart Maxwell: Tomorrow I will be announcing the beginning of a public consultation on a draft Glasgow Commonwealth Games Bill. This legislation will support the delivery of the Games and ensure that commitments given to the Commonwealth Games Federation can be met.

  The consultation document will be available at www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations.

Ambulance Service

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidelines have been issued in respect of the deployment of single-staffed ambulance units.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Ambulance Service takes seriously the health, safety and welfare of its staff. It recognises that some staff are required to work by themselves for significant periods of time without close or direct supervision in the community or in isolated work areas. The ambulance service has developed a Lone Worker Policy and a Violence Risk Assessment designed to enable the service to meet its obligation to protect such staff "so far as is reasonably practicable" from the risks of lone working. The policy is made available to all staff who may find themselves working in this way.

Ambulance Service

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents involving attacks on ambulance staff have been reported in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board area.

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents involving attacks on single-staffed ambulance units have been reported in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board area.

Shona Robison: The information is not collected centrally in the form requested.

  The Scottish Ambulance Service began capturing information on the numbers of incidents of violence and aggression towards staff in August 2004 when it issued guidance to staff about the need to report such incidents. It does not disaggregate the numbers by the NHS board area in which the incident occurred, nor does it differentiate between emergency and non-emergency service staff groups and nor does it identify whether the staff member was operating on their own or as part of a crew. There were 265 incidents reported in 2005 and 299 in 2006.

Ambulance Service

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether ambulance workers in single-staffed units have the right to refuse to be deployed on safety grounds.

Shona Robison: As set out in the Scottish Ambulance Service’s lone worker policy, on arrival at the scene of the incident, the member of staff is required to conduct a dynamic risk assessment. If having completed this assessment they feel the risk is too great for whatever reason, they will inform ambulance control who will take the necessary steps to assist, such as calling the police, the fire brigade or sending a back-up ambulance crew.

Ambulance Service

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to address concerns of ambulance workers that they are being put at risk due to the policy on the deployment of single-staffed units.

Shona Robison: To attack or intimidate dedicated NHS staff or any other emergency worker who is trying to help people in need is abhorrent and totally unacceptable.

  Any Scottish Ambulance Service member of staff who has a concern about working on their own should in the first instance raise this with their line manager. The ambulance service runs a number of committees designed to address staff governance issues such as this. These include local and national Health and Safety committees, local and national Partnership Forums, a working group to prevent violence to staff and a consultative group.

Child Protection

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will urgently put in place a system that ensures that children in care have their complaints of abuse heard by an independent person or organisation.

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what mechanisms are in place to effect the investigation of complaints regarding abuse made by a child in care.

Adam Ingram: National Care Standards, published by the Scottish Government, require all care services including residential establishments for children to have a complaints procedure for children in their care.

  Nationally, the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 requires the Care Commission to investigate complaints by individuals about a care service. Information about how to complain to the Care Commission must be made available by service providers.

  The Care Commission’s complaints procedure can be viewed at:

  http://www.carecommission.com/images/stories/documents/publications/documents/71.pdf.

  As part of that procedure, where the Care Commission considers it has a secondary role to an investigation by, for example the police or any other regulatory or statutory body, it will await the findings of fact of such investigations before determining what action to take.

  The guidance to Child Protection Committees provided in Protecting Children: A Shared Responsibility (1998) states that local authorities and other agencies who provide care and accommodation for children in residential placements, schools, foster care or other forms of accommodation should ensure guidance and procedures are in place to respond to allegations of abuse concerning children living away from home. The investigation of such allegations should include, as far as is practicable, an element of independence from the local authority or other agency.

  (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library/documents-w3/pch-00.htm).

Child Protection

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has fulfilled its commitment to work with agencies and existing helplines to develop a 24-hour child protection scheme as part of its Child Protection Reform Programme.

Adam Ingram: Yes. A working group has developed, and continues to monitor and improve, the 24-hour national freephone gateway service, which offers the general public easy access to child protection services in local agencies as part of the recently-concluded three-year Child Protection Reform Programme. The working group includes representatives of all the key agencies involved in delivering child protection services (e.g. local authority social work departments, police and NHS24) as well as existing child protection helplines such as ChildLine.

Child Protection

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any agency, group or company applied for the contract for the 24-hour child protection helpline that will work with agencies and existing helplines in response to its advert setting a closing date for applications of 27 November 2006.

Adam Ingram: Yes. Five bids for this service were received, and the contract was awarded to Essentia Group in January 2007 following a rigorous evaluation of tenders. The national service was launched on 12 February 2007.

Dentistry

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much NHS Borders spent on dentistry in each of the last four years; how much it plans to spend in each of the next four years, and in which geographical areas in Berwickshire, Selkirkshire, Tweeddale and Lauderdale such monies have been spent or committed.

Shona Robison: The total expenditure for General Dental Services (GDS) is shown in the following table. This includes the gross cost of fees and allowances paid to General Dental Practitioners, the pay of salaried dentists and costs of dental supplies used to provide services at Health Centres, less the income from charges collected from patients.

  NHS Borders spend on GDS over the last four years was:

  

 
Gross Expenditure
(£000)
Retained Income
(£000)
Net Expenditure
(£000)


2003-04
3,601
1,225
2,376


2004-05
3,830
992
2,838


2005-06
3,928
1,037
2,891


2006-07
5,095
913
4,182



  The 2006-07 expenditure included additional non-recurring funding of £0.82 million on miscellaneous dental equipment. There are plans to expand dental services at Coldstream and Hawick adding a further £1.27 million to dental expenditure and it is estimated that an increase of £0.25 million will be required to further develop dental services in Central Borders.

  NHS Borders projects that gross expenditure on general dental services will increase to £6.52 million by 2008-09 offset by income of £0.9 million, giving net expenditure of £5.6 million, which will be above their population share of national spending.

  In addition to expenditure on GDS, NHS Borders also has expenditure on hospital and community dental services which is detailed as follows:

  

 
Community Dental
(£000)
Oral Surgery
(£000)
Orthodontics
(£000)
Total
(£000)


2003-04
575
115
108
798


2004-05
529
132
138
799


2005-06
719
130
122
971


2006-07
866
133
73
1,072



  NHS Borders expect the expenditure on hospital and community dental services over the next four years will broadly follow a similar trend to the one detailed above.

  The Scottish Executive does not hold a financial breakdown of the amount spent on dentistry in each of the four geographical areas in NHS Borders.

Energy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much electricity has been generated in Scotland in each year since 2000, broken down by fuel source.

Jim Mather: Data on electricity supply and demand in Scotland is collected by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). The most current data available are for years 2000-05. The following table presents electricity generation by fuel source expressed in GigaWatt hours (GWh).

  Electricity Generation by Fuel Source (GWh)

  

 
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005


Coal
16,624
15,408
14,833
14,566
13,080
12,160


Oil
2,604
2,375
2,210
2,034
2,274
2,720


Gas
8,671
8,523
11,034
10,025
11,033
8,294


Nuclear
16,918
18,097
15,828
18,394
18,013
18,681


Hydro pumped storage
613
534
622
670
786
643


Hydro natural flow
4,665
3,738
4,455
2,989
4,544
4,612


Other renewables
306
465
672
823
1,361
1,876


Total 
50,401
49,140
49,654
49,501
51,091
48,986

Energy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the electricity generated in Scotland has been (a) consumed in Scotland and (b) exported to England and Wales in each year since 2000.

Jim Mather: Data on electricity supply and demand in Scotland is collected by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). The most current data available are for years 2000-05. The following table presents electricity generated, consumed and transferred expressed in GigaWatt hours (GWh).

  Total Amount of Electricity Generated and Consumed in Scotland (GWh)

  

 
Total Generated
Total Consumed
Total transferred to England, Wales and 
Northern Ireland*


2000
50,041
34,732
9,582


2001
49,140
34,442
8,696


2002
49,653
38,617
7,141


2003
49,501
36,893
6,830


2004
51,091
35,898
9,363


2005
48,985
38,926
7,208



  Note: *The Moyle interconnector was opened in 2002 to allow electricity transfers between Scotland and Northern Ireland. Prior to 2002, transfers were to the England and Wales grid only.

Environment

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to take forward the review of the enforcement of environmental law; what plans it has to consult further on any of the issues raised, especially in relation to environmental courts, and when it will announce its intentions.

Michael Russell: A report on the Strengthening and Streamlining: The Way Forward for the Enforcement of Environmental Law in Scotland consultation exercise is to be produced later in the summer, collating the responses received under the key component headings that appeared in the consultation document. It is intended that a copy of this report will be placed on the Scottish Executive website. Thereafter the responses will be analysed and reviewed, together with other available evidence to help the Government reach decisions on how the enforcement of environmental law in Scotland might be further developed.

Environment

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to introduce legislation to transpose into Scots Law the provisions of the EU environmental liability directive.

Michael Russell: We aim to transpose the directive by March 2008. We are taking this forward in a way which is focussed on Scottish circumstances and priorities.

Environment

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many sites of special scientific interest (SSSI) there are in Scotland; how many of the features for which they have been notified are in favourable condition; whether it will list the reasons for any features being in an unfavourable condition, showing the number of cases of unfavourable condition as a result of that reason, and what steps it is taking to address these cases.

Michael Russell: There are 1,455 SSSIs in Scotland. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has assessed 2,347 of the natural features for which these sites have been notified as being in favourable condition. In addition to this, 129 features have been assessed as being in unfavourable but recovering condition. At present, assessments of the reasons for unfavourable condition is only available for 778 of these features and these are shown as follows. (Up to three reasons for unfavourable condition can be noted for each feature).

  

 
No. of Features


Agricultural operations 
77


Grazing - overgrazing/undergrazing
330


Burning (presence/absence/methods and changes in these)
59


Game and fisheries management activities and freshwater aquaculture
32


Water management 
55


Water quality – direct or diffuse inputs 
33


Forestry operations 
69


Recreation / disturbance 
107


Flood defence or Coastal defence works 
10


Development carried out under planning permission (including roads, Acts of Parliament etc)
15


Statutory Undertaker (i.e. works carried out by a statutory body which is not required to seek planning permission, including military operations)
17


Lack of remedial management (e.g. stopping-up drains, scrub cutting, erecting deer fences)
93


Invasive species 
221


Earth Science feature obscured / eroded (e.g. coastal erosion) / modified (e.g. cave entrances)
9


Dumping / spreading / storage of materials
30


Natural event (e.g. extreme weather)
40


Other (largely relating to off-site factors)
187



  SNH is taking forward action in appropriate ways including active engagement with land owners, occupiers and statutory bodies to identify and take forward appropriate remedial measures. Support is available from a variety of measures including Rural Stewardship Schemes, Scottish Forestry Grant Schemes, Natural Care Schemes and individual management agreements.

Environmental Justice

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to improve the prosecution of environmental crime.

Frank Mulholland QC: Procurators fiscal are provided with appropriate training, development opportunities and guidance material to enable them to carry out their varied duties. That includes specific guidance and training on environmental crime.

  A national network of prosecutors who specialise in environmental cases has been in place since 2004. They work closely with professionals from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), the police and other specialist agencies, and provide advice to prosecution colleagues as appropriate. One of our environmental specialists has completed a six months secondment with SEPA, assisting in the preparation of prosecution reports and providing legal advice.

  A joint environmental training programme for prosecutors and SEPA lawyers has been established, with at least two joint training events each year, including site visits, presentations and discussion. This has resulted in improved liaison between SEPA and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and enhanced knowledge of environmental issues and policy matters.

Fisheries

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-12 by Richard Lochhead on 7 June 2007, what the terms of reference will be of the review of the Fleet Renewal Programme; which persons will conduct the review; what the professional and occupational qualifications are of those conducting the review; over what period of time the review will be conducted, and whether the review and its recommendations will be (a) published, (b) available for scrutiny by the appropriate parliamentary committee and (c) brought forward for debate by the Parliament following or in advance of any committee scrutiny.

Richard Lochhead: The terms of reference of the review are to:

  Consider whether the performance aims of the agency can be achieved effectively through refurbishment of one or both of the two existing older vessels;

  Consider whether there is a case for an increase in the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency’s (SFPA) fleet from four to five vessels, and

  Consider procurement options.

  The review will be led by the Chief Executive of the SFPA who will utilise internal professional expertise and call on specialist support of Naval Architects, economists and others as required. The Chief Executive will report to me by the end of the summer, which will enable decisions to be taken as part of the spending review.

  I will place a copy of the review in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 43082), and make a copy available to the Rural Affairs and Environment Committee.

Fisheries

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the organisations that the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment has met to discuss fisheries matters since his appointment.

Richard Lochhead: Since my appointment I have had meetings with the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, Shetland Fishermen’s Association, Orkney Fishermen’s Association, Mallaig and North West Fishermen’s Association, Fishermen’s Association Ltd and the Scottish Fishermen’s Organisation. I have had further discussions with a range of others with relevant interests. I shall be meeting with representatives of environmental organisations on 28 June 2007.

  I intend to meet with other organisations representing all aspects of fishing communities as soon as practicable.

Flooding

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review legislation relating to flooding; what consultation it is planning with stakeholders on the matter, and when it will announce its intentions.

Michael Russell: In his statement to Parliament on 21 June 2007, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth announced that flooding legislation will be consulted on with a view to legislation. We are looking to encourage a more sustainable approach to flood risk management in Scotland, and shall be consulting widely on our proposals, including interactive workshops targeted at stakeholders. We shall inform Parliament of our legislative proposals after we have had the opportunity to consider responses to the consultation.

Flooding

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to ensure the timely transposition into Scots Law of the EU floods directive and what plans it has to consult stakeholders on the matter.

Michael Russell: In his statement to Parliament on 21 June 2007, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth announced that flood risk management will be consulted on with a view to legislation. The consultation process will include the need for timely transposition of the proposed Directive on the Assessment and Management of Flood Risks. We shall inform Parliament of our legislative proposals, once we have had an opportunity to consider the responses to the consultation.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive in what year the prescription drug Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) was introduced in the United Kingdom.

Shona Robison: Methylphenidate hydrochloride has been licensed in the UK as part of a comprehensive treatment programme for attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) in children aged six years and older since 1988. Ritalin, a brand name of the drug substance methylphenidate hydrochloride, was first authorised in the UK on 31 October 1997.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the prescription drug Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) is licensed for use on children.

Shona Robison: Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) is licensed for use in children aged six years and over as part of a comprehensive treatment programme for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Treatment should be under the supervision of a specialist in childhood behavioural disorders.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many doses of Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) have been prescribed to children since its introduction.

Shona Robison: Information collated centrally by NHS National Services Scotland on prescribed doses of drugs is measured using the average maintenance dose of a drug as used in adults. This unit of measurement is based on advice from the World Health Organization. It is not possible to extract from that data the number of doses of Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) prescribed exclusively for children.

  NHS National Services Scotland website carries general information about drugs used in the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This information can be found at www.isdscotland.org.

  More generally, in relation to the management of ADHD, NHS Quality Improvement Scotland is currently undertaking a national audit of the care and treatment provided throughout Scotland for children with ADHD, including the use of drug therapy. The report of this exercise is due to be published in March 2008.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any cases of children suffering adverse or severe adverse effects from the use of the prescription drug Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) since its introduction and, if so, how many such cases have been reported.

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for methyphendidate is 588. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any child deaths have been reported as a result of the administration of the prescription drug Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride).

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected fatal ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for methyphendidate is nine. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive in what year the prescription drug Risperdal (risperidone) was introduced in the United Kingdom.

Shona Robison: The first Risperdal preparations (Risperdal 1, 2, 3 and 4mg tablets) were authorised in the UK on 8 December 1992.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the prescription drug Risperdal (risperidone) is licensed for use on children.

Shona Robison: Risperdal is not licensed for use in children. However, clinicians can use drugs off-license i.e. outside their licensed indications, if they consider that treatment to be the most appropriate for an individual patient. In these circumstances the clinician takes personal responsibility for the use of the drug.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many doses of Risperdal (risperidone) have been prescribed to children since its introduction.

Shona Robison: It is not possible to extract from prescription data collated centrally by NHS National Services Scotland the number of doses of Risperdal (risperidone) prescribed exclusively for children.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any cases of children suffering adverse or severe adverse effects from the use of the prescription drug Risperdal (risperidone) since its introduction and, if so, how many such cases have been reported.

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for Risperdal (risperidone) is 190. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any child deaths have been reported as a result of the administration of the prescription drug Risperdal (risperidone).

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected fatal ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for Risperdal (risperidone) is two. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive in what year the prescription drug Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride) was introduced in the United Kingdom.

Shona Robison: Efexor and Efexor XL are brand names of the drug substance venlafaxine hydrochloride. Venlafaxine has been licensed in the UK since November 1994 and Efexor XL, the modified release form of the drug, was first authorised in August 1997.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the prescription drug Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride) is licensed for use on children.

Shona Robison: Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride) is not licensed for use in children and adolescents under the age of 18 years. However, clinicians can use drugs off-license i.e. outside their licensed indications, if they consider that treatment to be the most appropriate for an individual patient. In these circumstances the clinician takes personal responsibility for the use of the drug.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many doses of Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride) have been prescribed to children since its introduction.

Shona Robison: It is not possible to extract from prescription data collated centrally by NHS National Services Scotland the number of doses of venlafaxine hydrochloride prescribed exclusively for children.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any cases of children suffering adverse or severe adverse effects from the use of the prescription drug Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride) since its introduction and, if so, how many such cases have been reported.

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for venlafaxine which includes Efexor XL is 92. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups.

Health

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any child deaths have been reported as a result of the administration of the prescription drug Efexor XL (venlafaxine hydrochloride).

Shona Robison: The safety of medicines is reserved and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through the spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The safety of all marketed drugs is continually monitored by the MHRA and CHM. The MHRA has provided the following information:

  The number of suspected fatal ADR reports received by the MHRA for children aged 0-17 years from 1 July 1963 (when the Yellow Card Scheme was introduced) to 15 June 2007 inclusive for venlafaxine which includes Efexor XL is two. This figure includes reports received from the whole of the UK.

  It is important to note that the submission of a suspected ADR report does not necessarily mean that it was caused by the drug. Many factors have to be taken into account in assessing causal relationships including temporal association, the possible contribution of concomitant medication and the underlying disease. Additionally, the use of medicines may vary between different age groups

Health

Kenneth Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether people with Duchenne muscular dystrophy in Scotland have access to the same range of treatment and support as those in the rest of the United Kingdom.

Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-1097 on 22 June 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the procedures and protocols for the management of breast screening have been adhered to by all breast clinics in each NHS board area.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Breast Screening Programme standards are set by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland. Its latest report was published in December 2006 and states "this second, independent review shows beyond doubt that the programme achieves high clinical standards, not as a one-off, but consistently, year after year". The report is available at www.nhshealthquality.org .

Health

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to ensure that children with lung disease receive local specialised respiratory care in both a hospital and community setting.

Shona Robison: As part of the specialist children’s services project, a review of respiratory service provision for children and young people is underway. The key outcome of this process is to ensure the sustainable provision of local respiratory services within both hospital and community settings.

Health

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what indicators are used to quantify research investment into lung disease and whether such research investment is increased in proportion to the number of people affected by lung conditions.

Shona Robison: Burden of disease is used as a comparator for research investment across different diseases. This is frequently measured in terms of disability adjusted life years (DALYs) which measure the sum of life years lost due to premature mortality and years lived with a disability adjusted for the severity and thus they take into account the impact of mortality and morbidity in a single measure. Trends in the level of research investment generally correlate with the overall trend in the DALY ranking. In a recent analysis performed by the UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC), it was clear that for lung disease the level of research funding was lower than the comparative burden of disease. Further information can be obtained from the UKCRC website www.ukcrc.org .

  Research investment does not increase automatically in proportion to the number of people affected by lung conditions. However, when assessing the quality of research proposals, reviewers do take into account the burden and increased prevalence of disease.

Housing

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which official body can instruct Glasgow Housing Association to extend the maximum time period of repayment from homeowners for improvement works.

Stewart Maxwell: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:

  Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) is an independent housing association and charity. As an independent organisation it is expected to obtain and act on its own legal advice in relation to issues such as the length of time it should allow home owners for repayment of the costs of improvement work. I understand that GHA has taken legal advice relating to the period of time it can allow without breaching its charitable objects.

  Communities Scotland is the lead regulator for registered social landlords. But neither it, nor any other official body, has the power to dictate to regulated bodies on specific issues such as repayment times.

Housing

Bob Doris (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the public money, including any interest accrued on such money, that was provided to Glasgow Housing Association for the building of new social rented housing was ring-fenced for that purpose at point of transfer and, if so, whether it will continue to be so ring-fenced.

Stewart Maxwell: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her response is as follows:

  At the point of stock transfer, Scottish ministers entered into a legal agreement with Glasgow Housing Association to provide £113 million between 2004 and 2009 to build new rented homes. GHA draws down the grant in line with its new build programme. The £113 million is ring-fenced in the sense that, under the terms of this agreement, it can only be used to deliver GHA’s new build programme. The terms and conditions of any arrangement to provide grant beyond March 2009 will be for Scottish ministers to consider.

Older People

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take following the release of the results of a survey by the UK Department of Health which show that Scotland has the worst record in the UK for the abuse of elderly men and the second worst record for elder abuse overall.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether current procedures to ensure the protection of elderly people are adequate.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the reality of elder abuse and is tackling this through implementing the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 and the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007. The former will introduce a wide range of measures to support adults who are subjected to abuse wherever this takes place, whilst the latter prevents unsuitable individuals from entering the workforce. The report findings will be taken into account in this work.

Older People

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to reduce incidences of elder abuse in a (a) person’s home and (b) care home.

Shona Robison: Reducing incidences of abuse is everyone’s responsibility. In addition to the legislation outlined in the answer to question S3W-1114 on 27 June 2007, the Scottish Government sponsors the Care Commission and the Scottish Social Services Council to ensure that national care standards are met and that staff are appropriately trained. We also fund the Scottish Helpline for Older People and Age Concern Scotland’s Elder Abuse project so that advice is readily available to those who need it. On a preventative level, a substantial campaign to combat ageism is on-going and we are actively considering what further supports can be offered to carers.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Older People

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will seek to meet urgently representatives of Age Concern Scotland, Action on Elder Abuse and other advocacy agencies for elderly people to gain further information about the experiences of their membership in respect of abuse at the hands of carers.

Shona Robison: Scottish government officials already meet frequently with a wide range of older people’s representatives to be able to implement the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 effectively and they will continue to do so.

Older People

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to improve advocacy services for elderly people in receipt of home care services.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the important role that advocacy and similar support services can provide for those who may need such assistance. Various grant schemes operated by the Scottish Government provide considerable financial support to a range of national and local organisations to support and advise the elderly, including those in receipt of home care services.

  For those people with a mental disorder, including dementia, the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 places a duty on NHS boards and local authorities to ensure the provision of appropriate independent advocacy service for all. A number of local advocacy projects are also supported through the Mental Health Specific Grant scheme.

  The Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 also contains a duty on councils to consider the importance of providing appropriate services to an adult at risk, including advocacy, when it is considering intervening to protect the adult from harm.

Older People

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider setting up a working group to examine what action could be taken to reduce the prevalence of elder abuse in Scotland.

Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answers to questions S3W-1115 and S3W-1118 both answered on 27 June 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Olympic Games

Stuart McMillan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what benefits the London Olympics will have for the Greenock and Inverclyde constituency.

Stewart Maxwell: The sportscotland National Centre at Inverclyde has applied to be promoted in the official brochure of venues for training camps to be produced by the London Organising Committee. Decisions on training camps will be taken in early 2008.

Prison Service

Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to build any new prisons.

Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service has no current plans to construct any new prisons other than the prisons announced following the consultation on the Prison Estate in 2002. In addition, a consultation exercise was held regarding the future of prison services in the northeast and it was made clear at the outcome of that consultation exercise that a final decision would be made after the result of the spending review in 2007 was known.

Renewable Energy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a breakdown of current installed capacity for renewables, broken down by technology.

Jim Mather: The following technologies qualify as renewable under the terms of the Renewables Obligation (Scotland) (although not all forms of energy from waste are eligible for support):

  

Technology
Installed Capacity
(Megawatts)


Hydro
1,348


Wind
1,060


Energy from Waste
98


Biomass
13


Wave
1


Total
2,520